The Day My Life Changed pt 4

Catch up... Part 1 , part 2 and part 3.


Finally the EMTs were able to get my door open and asked me if I was okay to get up.  I assured them that I was fine, I had just hurt my hand.  And then I attempted to get out of the car.

"Oh FUCK!" 

Immediately followed by "Oh my gosh, I"m so sorry" came out of my mouth.  Up until that point in my life, I had never uttered the f word.  Kinda funny now considering the speed with with it leaves my lips now.

Getting out of the car, or rather attempting to get out of the car made me realize that perhaps I was more injured that I had previously thought.  My knee hurt like you wouldn't believe.  The EMTs pulled me out of the car as I quietly repeatedly my mantra "fuck, fuck. fuck. fuck. fuck".   My mother would have been so embarrassed had she been there.

Finally in the ambulance, they managed to shove me, Gma & Attitude King all in one ambulance while they took Drama Queen in her own.  The paramedics asked if I was okay going to the children's hospital vs the one closest to us because they felt that Drama Queen needed that.  Naturally I agreed.  I was warned that we would be going fast and with sirens blazing.   The single scariest day my life to that point.

I don't remember a lot of the actual hospital stay.  I was pretty drugged up.  Gma was released from the ER with a broken wrist - note : never put your hand thru the little inside handle of a car door, you may just break your wrist.  Attitude King was released with no injuries. Oddly enough, he was not 100% potty trained prior to the accident but he never had another accident afterwards. I think he was traumatized by the paramedics cutting his clothes off him in the ambulance looking for injuries.  He was a very lucky boy.  The force of the impact caused the 60/40 split to come undone and the stroller in the truck was shoving him forward.  He was bent over when the paramedics pulled him from the car.

Drama Queen spend a night or two (honestly, I didn't see her once we were admitted and have very little memory of the next several days) in the hospital.  She had bruises from her carseat (5 point harness) which is what she complained about the most.  On impact, her chest plate of her car seat broke and she was thrown forward into the back of the passenger's seat where she hit her head.  She ended up with 60 internal stitches to fix her forehead - she had cut it clear to the bone, hence the blood all over her face.  Thankfully they called in a pediatric plastic surgeon to fix her up.  She spent the next few days in her room and happily told her grandparents repeatedly that if you just push the magic (nurse) button, they will bring you ICE CREAM!  

Me- well I had broke my wrist (note: never stick your hand thru the steering wheel while driving, you  may just break your wrist), the engine was shoved back into the car & shattered my knee cap -  I had surgery the following day to remove the fragments of my knee cap , it was too damaged to repair at all and I was too young (the drs said) for an artificial one so I am now just kneecap-less on one leg, and also ruptured a disc in my back (surgery was a year later for that).  Along with the lovely bruises from airbags and seatbelts.. All things considered, I got off pretty light.  At least me and mine were still alive.   I spent a month or so in a wheelchair and then a few months with a walker.  Months of physical therapy.  Years of pain in that leg along with it giving out whenever it wanted to.

Today- well my Gma passed away several years ago, but she recovered completely.  Attitude King doesn't remember it at all.   Drama Queen remembers getting a catheter (very traumatic) and the magic ice cream button.  She spent years with bangs trying to cover up her scar but now it has faded some and as she grew, it moved up closer to her hairline- she has gotten over that insecurity and it doesn't affect how she wears her hair.  Me, I am doing good.  My leg has finally stopped giving out and doesn't cause me a ton of pain (Go LIMU!), my back doesn't seize up like it used to.  I'm pretty darn good.  I still have PTSD from the wreck.  The first time riding in a car (driving or not) on a slick road will throw me right back to that day and I can see it all over again.  Random things that happen in the car can throw me back there.  It's not fun, but it's something I've learned to live with.  I remind myself that at least I'm here to deal with it.


And that is the story of the day 13 years ago that changed my life. ..